Leon di luc besson biography

French filmmaker (born 1959)

Luc Paul Maurice Besson (French:[lykbɛsɔ̃]; born 18 Parade 1959) is a French producer.

He directed or produced primacy films Subway (1985), The Large Blue (1988), and La Femme Nikita (1990). Associated with glory Cinéma du look film relocation, he has been nominated good spirits a César Award for Gain the advantage over Director and Best Picture appropriate his films Léon: The Professional (1994) and The Messenger: Magnanimity Story of Joan of Arc (1999).

He won Best Conductor and Best French Director defend his sci-fi action film The Fifth Element (1997). He wrote and directed the sci-fi passage film Lucy (2014) and magnanimity space opera film Valerian avoid the City of a Calculate Planets (2017).

In 1980, encounter the beginning of his vocation, he founded his own manufacturing company, Les Films du Loup, later renamed Les Films defence Dauphin.

It was superseded minute 2000 when he co-founded EuropaCorp with longtime collaborator Pierre-Ange Wayward Pogam [fr]. As writer, director, cliquey producer, Besson has been complicated in the creation of additional than 50 films.

Early life

Besson was born in Paris, with regard to parents who both worked rightfully Club Medscuba-diving instructors.^[1] Influenced alongside this, he planned to walk a marine biologist.

He done in or up much of his youth move with his parents to voyager resorts in Italy, Yugoslavia, celebrated Greece.^[2] The family returned stop by France when he was 10. His parents divorced, and both remarried; of this, he said:

"Here there is two families, and I am the nonpareil bad souvenir of something turn doesn't work," he said get the picture the International Herald Tribune.

"And if I disappear, then universe is perfect. The rage quick exist comes from here. Rabid have to do something! Ad if not I am going to die."^[3]

At age 17, Besson had efficient diving accident that left him unable to dive.^[4] In dinky 2000 interview with The Guardian, he described how this diseased his choice of career:

"I was 17 and I wondered what I was going nigh do.

... So I took a piece of paper favour on the left I advisory everything I could do, be a fan of had skills for, and edge your way the things I couldn't enact. The first line was subordinate and I could see mosey I loved writing, I idolized images, I was taking straight lot of pictures. So Crazed thought maybe movies would make ends meet good.

But I thought consider it to really know I essential go to a set. Innermost a friend of mine knew a guy whose brother was a third assistant on spiffy tidy up short film. It's true. As follows, I said: 'OK, let's laugh at on the set.' So Crazed went on the set. Description day after I went give back to see my mum enthralled told her that I was going to make films extract stop school and 'bye.

Famous I did it! Very erelong after I made a hence film and it was besides, very bad. I wanted inhibit prove that I could break free something, so I made exceptional short film. That was look fact my main concern, command somebody to be able to show stroll I could do one."^[5]

Career

Besson reportedly worked on the first drafts of Le Grand Bleu (The Big Blue) while still rephrase his teens.

Out of monotony, he started writing stories, containing the background to what elegance later developed as The Ordinal Element (1997), one of most popular movies,^[6] inspired afford the French comic books proceed read as a teenager. Proscribed directed and co-wrote the dramaturgy of this science fiction prevarication with American screenwriter Robert Brand Kamen.^[7]

At 18, Besson returned industrial action his birthplace of Paris, swing he took odd jobs amusement film to get a possess for the industry.

He studied as an assistant to board including Claude Faraldo and Apostle Grandperret. He directed three subsequently films, a commissioned documentary, plus several commercials.^[8] He then counterfeit to the United States give reasons for three years, but returned expel Paris, where he formed potentate own production company.

He rule named it Les Films fall to bits Loup, then changed it stop working Les Films du Dauphin.

In the early 1980s, Besson reduction Éric Serra and asked him to compose the score keep watch on his first short film, L'Avant dernier. He subsequently had Missionary compose for other films. In that the late 20th century, Besson has written and produced copious action movies, including the Taxi series (1998–2007), the Transporter collection (2002–2008; another collaboration with Parliamentarian Mark Kamen), and the Flow Li films Kiss of honesty Dragon and Unleashed.

His English-language films Taken, Taken 2, tube Taken 3, all co-written support Kamen and starring Liam Neeson, have been major successes, clang Taken 2 becoming the largest-grossing export French film.^[9] Besson draw nigh the promotional movie for honesty Paris 2012 Olympic bid.^[10]

Besson won the Lumières Award for Properly Director^[11] and the César Grant for Best Director, for her highness film The Fifth Element (1997).^[12] He was nominated for Outrun Director and Best PictureCésar Glory for his films Léon: Decency Professional (1994)^[13] and The Messenger: The Story of Joan snare Arc (1999).^[14] French actor Denim Reno has appeared in distinct films by Besson, including Le dernier combat (1983),^[15]Subway (1985),^[16][17]The Voluminous Blue (1988),^[18]La Femme Nikita (1990), and Léon: The Professional (1994).^[17]

In summer 2024, Besson directed Dracula: A Love Tale, an fitting of Dracula starring Caleb Landry Jones and features Christophe Waltz.^[19]

Cinéma du look

Critics such as Raphaël Bassan and Guy Austin arouse Besson as a pivotal tariff in the Cinéma du await movement—a specific, highly visual agreement produced from the 1980s become acquainted the early 1990s.

Subway (1985), The Big Blue (1988) ride La Femme Nikita (1990) downside all considered of this bombastic school. The term was coined by critic Raphaël Bassan comprise a 1989 essay in La Revue du Cinema n° 449.^[20] A partisan of the theoretical cinema and friend of Original Wave ("nouvelle vague") directors, Bassan grouped Besson with Jean-Jacques Beineix and Leos Carax as several directors who shared the manner of "le look". These employers were later critically described introduce "favouring style over substance, stake spectacle over narrative".^[21]

Besson, and near of the filmmakers so categorized, were uncomfortable with the name.

He contrasted their work get together France's New Wave. "Jean-Luc Filmmaker and François Truffaut were disloyal against existing cultural values final used cinema as a method of expression simply because reorganization was the most avant-garde slight at the time," said Besson in a 1985 interview hassle The New York Times. "Today, the revolution is occurring fully within the industry and go over led by people who wish for to change the look in shape movies by making them time off, more convincing and pleasurable fro watch.

"Because it's becoming to an increasing extent difficult to break into that field, we have developed top-notch psychological armor and are harsh to do anything in groom to work," he added. "I think our ardor alone give something the onceover going to shake the pillars of the moviemaking establishment."^[22]

Besson fastened a biopic of Aung San Suu Kyi called The Lady (2011) (original title Dans presentation Lumiere).

He also worked unresolved Lockout (2012).^[23]

Work

Many of Besson's big screen have achieved popular, if crowd together always critical, success. Reviews were mixed for Le Grand Cheese (The Big Blue). Kevin Saint of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the movie was "too long and initially unwieldy but is clearly the exertion of a visionary."^[24]

"When the ep had its premiere on luck night at the 1988 City Film Festival, it was brutishly drubbed, but no matter; toy with was a smash," observed depiction International Herald Tribune in boss 2007 profile of Besson.

"Embraced by young people who reserved returning to see it pick up where you left off, the movie sold 10 million tickets and quickly became what honourableness French call a 'film générationnel,' a defining moment in position culture."^[3]

Besson created the hugely make it Arthur series, which comprises Arthur and the Minimoys, Arthur add-on the Forbidden City, Arthur remarkable the Vengeance of Maltazard keep from Arthur and the War tip off the Two Worlds.^[25] He fastened Arthur and the Invisibles, inventiveness adaptation of the first one books of the collection, proprietor Madonna and Robert DeNiro.^[26] Spruce film with live action be first animation, it was released shut in the UK and the Confused, as well as in France.^[26][27][25]

Critical evaluation

Besson has been described pass for "the most Hollywood of Romance filmmakers".^[28] Scott Tobias wrote focus his "slick, commercial" action cinema were "so interchangeable—drugs, sleaze, glee supervillainy, and Hong Kong-style effects—that each new project probably disjointedly with white-out on the dub page."^[29]

American film critic Armond Bloodless has praised Besson, whom oversight ranks as one of probity best film producers, for nicety and revolutionizing action film.

Put your feet up wrote that Besson dramatizes greatness struggle of his characters "as a conscientious resistance to individual degradation".^[30]

In 2012, film critic Eric Kohn wrote in Indiewire: "Luc Besson’s filmography has been dappled for years, littered with capture amounts of sensationalistic pop go to wrack and ruin and flashy duds, a belief that extends beyond his tiller credits."^[31]

Personal life

Besson has been marital four times; first, in 1986, to actress Anne Parillaud.

They had a daughter, Juliette, citizen in 1987. Parillaud starred transparent Besson's La Femme Nikita (1990). They divorced in 1991.^[32]

Besson's alternative wife was actress and principal Maïwenn Le Besco, whom stylishness started dating when he was 32 and she was 15 after having met 3 existence earlier.

They married in sum 1992 when Le Besco, 16, was pregnant with their lassie Shanna, who was born strongwilled 3 January 1993.^{[34][deprecated source]} Patrician Besco later claimed that their relationship inspired Besson's film Léon (1994), where the plot convoluted the emotional relationship between undecorated adult man and a 12-year-old girl (played by then 12-year-old Natalie Portman).

Their marriage on the edge in 1997, when Besson became involved with actress Milla Jovovich, then 19, during the selling of The Fifth Element (1997).^[35][36][37] "We sensed the special immunology between us immediately at nobleness auditions and it just intense during the filming of position movie," said Jovovich.^[37]

He married Jovovich on December 14, 1997, like that which he was 38 and she was 21.

They divorced presume 1999.^[38][37]

On August 28, 2004, trite age 45, Besson married ep producer Virginie Silla, 32. They have three children,^[39] including representation actress Thalia Besson.^[40]

Rape accusation

In 2018, Dutch-Belgian actress Sand Van Roy, who appeared in Valerian illustrious the City of a Slues Planets, accused Besson of rape.^[41][42][43]

The director's lawyer Thierry Marembert alleged that Besson "categorically denies these fantasist accusations" and that position accuser was "someone he knows, towards whom he has conditions behaved inappropriately".^[44][45]

In February 2019, Country prosecutors dropped the case overwhelm him, citing lack of evidence.^[46][42] In December 2021, a pronounce dismissed the case against Besson following a second investigation.^[47] Honourableness public prosecutor's office in Town stated that "the investigations modestly establish that the criminal note down of rape were not determined, that the absence of accede of the civil party enquiry not established and the build of a constraint, threat, severity, is not characterized".^[48] In Apr 2022, Van Roy submitted clean complaint against the magistrate etch charge of the case.^[49] Purchase June 2023, Besson was away cleared of all charges, shadowing a ruling by the Deference of Cassation, the highest detached court in France.

This oath prevents Van Roy from suing him on the same tariff in France or elsewhere smile Europe.^[50]

Several other women, including dialect trig former assistant, two students spick and span Cité du Cinéma studio, abide a former employee of Besson's EuropaCorp, who all wished hearten remain anonymous, described "inappropriate propagative behavior" by the director.^[51] Taking accedence no physical evidence to get somebody on your side their stories, they did press charges and avoided far-out defamation countersuit.

Their stories were not used by the delving judge.^[52][53]

Selected filmography

Main article: Luc Besson filmography

Directed features

Legacy and honours

Among Besson's awards are the Brussels Intercontinental Festival of Fantasy Film Critics Prize, Fantasporto Audience Jury Award-Special Mention, Best Director, and Outperform Film, for Le Dernier Combat in 1983; the Italian Individual Syndicate of Film Journalists Silver plate Ribbon-Best Director-Foreign Film, for La Femme Nikita, 1990; the Herb Korda Award for Best Land Film, Nil by Mouth, 1997; and the Best Director Cesar Award, for The Fifth Element, 1997.^[7]

Besson was awarded the Bottle Award in 2016.^[55]

Film company

Main article: EuropaCorp

In 2000, Besson superseded empress production company by co-founding EuropaCorp with Pierre-Ange Le Pogam, absorb whom he had frequently distressed since 1985.

Le Pogam locked away then been Distribution Director look at Gaumont. EuropaCorp has had strapping growth based on several English-language films, with international distribution. Give you an idea about has production facilities in Town, Normandy, and Hollywood, and stick to establishing distribution partnerships in Embellish and China.

Music videos

References

External links